Holy Ship was a surreal experience that I am grateful for being a part of and getting three other buds to join in on the fun. I’ve been to EDC, Coachella, and a few other music festivals before and nothing compares. EDC is definitely the closest but venue-wise you can’t beat a music festival on a cruise ship. Marvin suggested maybe if it was on the Moon. Then, maybe then. It’s a lot easier to plan for 3,000 people than 150,000 and once you are on the boat, there’s no getting off. There’s no helicoptering in for a set, then peacing out. All 50+ DJs are ‘stuck’ on the same boat as you. Shared an elevator with Destructo, got to chat with Griz at the beach party, and fist bumped Oliver passing through the buffet. Everyone was so damn accessible and cool about being so. It’s simply the closest you can get to these otherworldly djs without personally knowing them.

Now on to the music. It felt as if every dj made sure to bring their A+++ game with new sets, new songs, and lots of energy. One thing I did not know before the trip was that nearly all of the djs play twice so you don’t have to stress about not being able to see one of your favorite djs when another fave is playing at the same time. Obviously it’s not always possible to do this at regular festies but HARD and Cloud 9 living just get ‘it’. One thing I’ve realized over the years of listening to music is when I go see someone live, I don’t want the same stuff. I want you to show me a good time as I already know you have a great taste in music judging from the songs I previously listened to. Yes, mix some of your produced stuff in there too but show me a good time, not just the entire album. That’s a mistake I see a lot of djs make to cater to the masses when in reality everyone already had faith you would show us a good time.

I will say the dj that blew me away performance-wise was Griz. Every set ends and starts within 10 seconds so we would stick around for a little bit of the next set. We didn’t plan on going to Griz but we ended up never leaving. His style is generally Pretty Lights/Glitch Mob kinda vibe with a bit of funk and sou. That said, he played with such intensity we were entranced for the hour he played. The crowd ate that energy up grooving the entire time. In his set he played Twist and Shout, Lowrider, and Funky Town and there wasn’t a still body in the place. Oh yeah, he plays the saxophone while working the tables too. Certain people just get it and he’s that guy. Also, was really welcoming to meet anyone and everyone that came up to him to say what up. There’s also something about playing on the pool deck of a cruise ship with the wind blowing in your hair that adds to the fun. After seeing him that first night we made sure to see him on the final night where his last song was Hakunah Matata and the crowd went ballistic.

Anyone who knows me well knows that Alex Metric is one of my all-time faves. I’ve been in his camp for a long, long time since I first heard one of his early tunes on a FIFA soundtrack. So obviously I made sure to see him all three times he played including the pre-party and twice with Oliver on a B2B (back to back, basically meaning playing together the entire set). While I enjoyed the first two sets, the third set blew me away. Both of their styles seemed to mesh perfectly and I think this was probably the best set top to bottom for me on the trip. Held in the a disco ballroom we could get right up close to them and basically shake their hands. All four of us danced harder than we had danced the entire trip nonstop for the entire set. So much groove, so much disco. They played whatever they wanted and the entire room ate it all up. And I don’t mean a remix or original of theirs, I mean ‘70s, ‘80s, it didn’t matter. They knew how to keep us dancing. That’s when you know a crowd is great and the djs are even better. After the set I ran into Vaughn from Oliver in the bathroom and told him how him and Alex Metric need to start a side project as that was amazing. He seemed genuinely pleased and said that they felt out the crowd at the pre-party and knew what to play during that final set.

One thing I realized over the course of the trip was that all the djs here were very talented. It felt as though HARD carefully curated the lineup and the set times. The logistics going into planning an event like this had to be real tough too and at least to me seemed to run seamlessly. Getting back to the talent level, there is so much good music out there now that it makes me think we are in the golden age of music. Yes, that’s a very strong statement to make but with improvements in technology and the pace at which trends in music are moving, there is so much out there right now. That’s why it didn’t matter what style I was listening to, it was all good stuff. Trap, dubstep, disco, deep house, electric soul, future house, it really didn’t matter, it was all great. Luckily no trance, get that weak shit outta here!

Everyone was so welcoming to the point that if you think someone is cool, has a cool piece of clothing, whatever, you tell them. I only saw one instance where there was any aggression directed towards another person and it was a skinny dude trying to pick a fight with a 6’4″ 220lb. guy. The guy was literally saying “I don’t want to fight you, please back away!”

I hope to make it back next year and I seriously implore you guys to check out a music festival some time and take in the amazing energy. I met so many cool people from lots of different places. The way I see it is I’d rather have three nights of 10s than a bunch of nights of 6s or 7s and this is a way to do exactly that. So check one out!

Epic Poker League recently released a teaser for their upcoming television coverage on CBS and Velocity. Because of Adam’s deep runs in both events so far, it is certain that he will see a decent amount of television time. See the video after the jump…